Motorboat speed control



Sept. 2, 1947- E. WHITING MOTORBOAT SPEED CONTROL Filed Sept. 2. 1944 YIIII/A l mvemoR A MINA ATTORNEYS v Patented Sept. 2, 147

1 Claim.

My invention refers to outboard motor speed control entirely independent of the motor speed audit-has for its primary object to provide a simple, cheaply constructed'outboard motor attachment embodying companion rudder blades set rearwardly of the propeller, with means for controlling the rudder blades, whereby the speed of the boat is regulated independently of the motor speed. The attachment being especially utilized in the sport of trolling for game fish.

Under present conditions for trolling purposes, the motor either runs at an undesirable high speed, or when slowed down it will choke and stop frequently, which is annoyin and detrimental in landing fish. Hence it is now common practice to take only a medium speed and hold it steadily for the fishing period.

A motor equipped with my attachment may be set at any speed and the forward motion of the boat is then controlled eifectively by setting the companion rudder blades at selected angles, whereby the propelling force of the motor is neutralized to an effective trolling speed. The boat under these conditions may be steered in the usual manner of swinging said motor on its shaft, or, as previously stated, the boat may be steered by manipulating the rudder blade attachment.

It is, therefore, manifest that the rudder blades under manual control may be moved or opened,

or partly so, together or independently, whereby the boat speed is retarded, or it may be turned completely around or reversed due to selected setting of said blades and locking the same in the set positions.

Another specific object of my invention is to provide a common pivot for the blades having brackets attached to the motor casing leg in conjunction with cranks, arms linked thereto and pivoted upon the standard steering lever with means for locking the arms in selected positions. With the above and other minor objects in view, my invention consists in certain peculiarities of construction and combination of parts as will be fully set forth hereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings and subsequently claimed.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 represents a side elevation of an outboard motor equipped with a rudder attachment embodying the features of my invention.

Figure 2 a plan view of the same, with parts broken away and in section to illustrate structural features.

Figure 3 a vertical sectional view of the rudder attachment showing the blade elements spread at a right angle to their normal position, partlyinsection, as indicated by line 3-3 of Figure 1;

Figure 4 a detailed plan sectional view through the rudder blade elements, the sectionbeing-indicated by line 4-6 of Figure 3.

Figure 5 a detailed. cross section through the rudder steering lever and blade controlling arms, the section being indicatedby line 55 of Figure 1, and

Figure 6 a cross sectional elevation through the pivot connection of the arms and steering lever.

Referring by characters to the drawings, A indicates a motor jacket, B a motor shaft casing leg, and C a propeller in gear connection with the motor shaft, said parts forming no part of my invention, and extending forwardly from the jacket A is the usual steering lever D.

My attachment to the standard motor described, embodies a vertically disposed tube l carrying brackets 22, which brackets are provided with feet attached to the leg B, in this particular illustration by screws, it being understood that any mechanical attaching means as, for example, clips may be used, whereby the attachment may be affixed to a standard motor by those unskilled in the art of mechanics. Revolvably mounted in the tube I is a rod 3 extending therethrough. The upper end of the rod is provided with a horizontally disposed crank t and the lower end of said rod has secured thereto a rudder blade 5.

The lower end of the tube I has secured thereto a companion rudder blade '5', said blade under normal conditions being folded back upon each other to form a single steering unit.

The upper end of the tube 5 has extending therefrom a crank 4', the same being a companion to the crank it and, as shown in Figure 2, when the rudder blades are folded upon each other the cranks ll' are set approximately at an angle of 45 from the rudder.

The motor steering lever D is provided with a pivot bolt 6 and mounted upon the same is a pair of arms 1-? which are connected by links 8-8' to the respective cranks tl l. The hubs of the arms 'l-'l, in this particular illustration of my invention, are provided with teeth 9-9 for locking engagement with a'spring controlled detent it carried by the steering lever. Thus it will be seen that the rudder blades may be independently adjusted or simultaneously adjusted to the desired angles for trolling purposes and for steering when desired. Thus the arms are locked to the steering lever D, whereby when the steering lever is turned to the right or left 3 it will automatically shift the rudder blades simultaneously, which rudder blades, in their closed position, would simply be utilized as a steering medium in conjunction with the shifting of the propeller wheel.

It will be noted that the hub ends of the arms 1-1' are toothed about the pivot. Hence, the arms may be adjusted independently to vary the angles of the blades and after said adjustment, the hubs of said arms are locked insaid adjusted position by the detent. Hence, one blade may be set at a greater angle than the other and the master steering lever will be actuated to direct the course and retardation of the boat.

While I have shown and described one exemplification of my invention, it is understood that I may vary the structural features within the scope of the claim. Y

As, for example, the rudder blades may be locked in various positions by any friction type elements in place of the tooth means shown.

I claim:

In an outboard motor having an encasing jacket about the motor, a propeller shaft casing leg extending downwardly from the 'jacket and a steering lever for the motor; the combination of a speed control attachment comprising a tube, brackets extending therefrom for attachment to the motor casing leg, a rod extending through the tube, companion blades secured to the lower ends of the tube and rod, a pair of cranks secured to the upper ends of said tube and rod, controlling arms pivotally connected to the motor steering lever, toothed hubs formed at the pivot ends of the arms, links connecting the free ends of the controlling arms, and rudder cranks, and a spring controlled detent carried at the end of the steering lever for meshed engagement with the controlling arms toothed hubs, whereby the angle of the companion blades are independently adjusted.

LEONARD E. WRITING.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number 

